COMPANY NEWS; PFIZER SAYS F.D.A., AFTER DEADLINE, IS STILL REVIEWING LYRICA

Published: September 2, 2004

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Pfizer said federal regulators continued to review Lyrica, the company's medicine for pain and seizure. The deadline for the Food and Drug Administration to approve or reject the drug was Tuesday, an F.D.A. spokeswoman said. She declined to comment further. A Pfizer spokeswoman, Mariann Caprino, said the drug was "still under review" but gave no other details. A ruling has been delayed for several years since the F.D.A. asked Pfizer early in the review to do more studies because of tumors found in mice that had been given the drug. Lyrica is chemically similar to Neurontin, the company's epilepsy drug, which has annual sales of more than $2 billion but faces competition from generic versions. Lyrica, also known by the name pregabalin, was approved in Europe in July.